A Technicolor You
by owlwayssandforever
Summary: Soulmates bring color to their partner's life...literally.


A/N: A gift for Elizabeth (MoonytheMarauder1)! It was so much fun writing this, and I very much hope you like it :) Uses the prompts MollyArthur and Soulmate AU. Also a HUGE HUGE thank you to Angel for making the cover for me, it's beautiful.

IPC #178 - [Action] Knitting  
365 #25 - Believe

o . o . o

Molly pushed the curl from her face, tucking it behind her ear even though she knew it would fall forward again within minutes. She hated having to have her hair tied back all day long, but there wasn't much she could do about that unless she wanted to get a pixie cut, which she very much didn't. Glancing around the cafe quickly, she saw the line beginning to grow and annoyance swept over her. _It's not their fault we're understaffed,_ she reminded herself, turning her attention back to the drink in front of her.

Molly was a wiz, which was only half the reason everyone loved her. She was also sweet and usually happy, but mostly because she could crank out lattes faster than anyone else in the store. It always stressed her out to be alone on the espresso machines during a big rush, but there was simply no choice. She handed each drink off with a smile, hurrying back to the next one.

"Thank you," one of the customers said in a low voice to her as she hand him a… what was it again? A soy latte, she thought, for Albert or Arnold or something. Molly glanced up at him, surprised by his manners - it was rare that customers said anything to her, especially when it was this busy - as his fingers overlapped hers on the cup.

"Have a great day," she said, her eyes fixed on his. They were light and friendly looking, and he had little lines in the corner like he was someone who laughed a lot.

"Thanks, you too Molly," he replied with a sincere smile, before turning away with his latte.

"Thanks," she whispered to his back, staring for a heartbeat too long before turning back to the line of drinks that was stacking up.

For the entire rest of her shift, something seemed off to Molly, like her vision was out of focus. She assumed it was just because she was overtired, and ignored it. She left the store and buttoned up her peacoat, winding her scarf around her neck to protect herself from the howling wind.

Molly got back to her apartment and hung up her coat and scarf, sinking into the rocking chair she kept by the window. It was supremely comfortable, and her favourite place to relax at the end of the day. She reached down to the basket she kept next to the chair and pulled out a skein of soft yarn. It was a medium shade, not unlike the sky on a cloudy day, with little twists of lighter yarn. It was one of her favourite yarns, fine and soft, which made for intricate patterns and beautiful garments. As she ran her fingers over it, something strange started to happen.

The yarn began to take on a hue. Slowly, pigment permeated her monochromatic world, staining the skein in her hands. It was soft and clear and it gave off a calming aura. Molly rushed forward, digging through her desk to find the little booklet everyone had. She ran her fingers over the names of the colours on the cover until she found one that looked similar to the yarn. Blue. As she looked around her apartment with her mouth forming a soft 'o' of wonder, Molly could see all different kinds of blue coming to life around her. The yarn in her hand was lighter, not like the dark blue flowers painted on her china. Fascinated, Molly flipped through the booklet until she found the section of all different kinds of blue, and she began to hold it up, comparing the various hues. The china flowers were royal blue, and the yarn was called slate. The water in the painting of the Mediterannean that hung on her wall was turquoise. She felt overwhelmed, and a little in awe. She loved it, blue.

As she examined the new colour, something occurred to her, and the thought hit her like a freight train. If she could see colour, it meant that at some point today, she had met her soulmate. Molly had absolutely no idea who it might have been - she couldn't think of any encounter that had stood out to her particularly. There had been no conversations that lasted longer than a few seconds. Who could it possibly be? It seemed likely that she had met the person at work, since she hadn't really gone anywhere else that day, so she resolved to pay more attention to her customers over the next few days, and try to work out the mystery.

Molly watched as people came and went at work, wondering if her soulmate might be one of them. But as they passed her by, no one struck her as anything but ordinary. She didn't feel any kind of draw, and wasn't she supposed to? Most of her friends worried about meeting their soulmates - what if they didn't like them after all? But Molly had no such anxieties, she had complete faith in the universe.

"Arthur!" she called out, ready to hand off the drink, and then suddenly there he was. The man with the manners from the day before. He smiled at her and reached out for his latte. He must work nearby, because he was wearing a suit and a pair of thin glasses, which was quite a handsome look for him. Molly noticed one other thing. His eyes were blue. The same slate blue as the yarn, as it happened.

"Thank you, Molly," he said with a grin that could power the whole city. "Enjoy the rest of your day!"

"Thank you," she replied, turning back to the espresso machine. It was a few seconds before she remembered that she had forgotten her name tag at home that morning. She turned around again, looking for Arthur, but he was already gone. He had remembered her name though.

Molly waited with bated breath to see if she would learn any new colours, and walked over to Hyde Park to sit and wait. She was enjoying the blue of the sky, relishing the crispness of the colour when a new one began to bleed into existence. The leaves above her head were slowly being stained with a colour that felt like rust on old steel. Molly grabbed the colour guide from her bag and held it up above her. Red. She could see red!

It was so vibrant and strong, maybe even a little bit aggressive. Some shades of red in her little booklet felt like an assault on her eyes, and she turned the page on them quickly. But there were other shades that were prettier, and more natural. They reminded her of hard work and that good kind of tired that meant you'd done something worthwhile with your day..

When she sat up, she saw her curls as they tumbled over her shoulder, and gasped. Her hair was red! Not quite like the leaves, it was darker and more subdued, but when the sunlight shone on it just right, it glowed. She looked at the little booklet and scanned through the different shades until she found the right one. Auburn. She had auburn coloured hair.

The next day, Molly waited for Arthur to come into the cafe, eager to see if there was anything about him that was red, or even just to look at his blue eyes again. But he didn't come in, and she couldn't help her disappointment. Even more disappointing was the complete lack of new colour that day. Now that it had begun, she craved more, and not receiving a new one felt like suffering withdrawal. There was still so much of her world that was monochromatic, and the little tastes of blue and red weren't nearly enough.

The only good part of the day was the theory that Molly developed as a result. She was almost positive that Arthur was the reason she could now see colours, but she needed a few more encounters to be sure. A thrill raced through her veins at the idea that Arthur could be her soulmate. What would she say to him? She had spent so long doubting that she would find that person, she had no idea how to proceed.

Molly carefully catalogued her run-ins with Arthur over the next few days, and every time she saw him, she gained a new colour. Green was next, filling her entire world and resonating with a homely feel. Purple came the following day, a majestic colour that she didn't see until she watched the sun setting over the city. After that was yellow, then orange, and suddenly her world seemed filled with colour.

She couldn't help but observe the little details about Arthur that appeared with each new colour. His hair was the same shade of red as the leaves on the autumn trees, he wore a green tie to work, his wristwatch was gold. Each colour seemed tied to him, as the first shade of each colour she gained somehow manifested on his person. This confirmed Molly's theory, but now that she was certain who her soulmate was, Molly found herself completely unsure of what to do. How exactly did one walk up to their soulmate and say, '_Hello, I believe we're destined to be together'_? What if she was wrong?

Molly agonized over the next step for days, opening her mouth to say something and then simply resorting to "Have a nice day," at the last moment. It was when she sat knitting with her favourite blue yarn that she came up with a plan. When Arthur came in for his customary drink the next day, Molly grabbed his cup and immediately broke out her Sharpie, scrawling a message across the side. _You have such lovely blue eyes. _She hoped that it would be enough to clue him in, but it was also easy enough to pretend didn't happen if it turned out she was incorrect in her deduction. Molly handed off the cup with a nervous smile, waiting to see his response, but Arthur accepted it without once glancing down. His gaze seemed fixed on her, and he seemed as thought he wanted to say something.

"That shade of green is really pretty on you," he said at last, his cheeks taking on a delightful pink tinge.

Molly briefly thought about the emerald sweater she had chosen, and how she couldn't quite decide whether that was her favourite colour or the slate blue that she had first seen. But then his words sank in more, and Molly understood.

Arthur could see colours too!

She smiled brightly, and Arthur looked relieved, returning her smile with equal enthusiasm.

"Would you like to have dinner?" Molly asked, emboldened by the knowledge that he was her soulmate, her perfect match.

"I would love to," he replied, grinning ear to ear.

Molly thought that she might not have seen anything as adorable as Arthur adjusting his glasses as he smiled at her. Goodness, she was already smitten.

o . o . o

"Which was your first colour?" Molly asked as soon as Arthur took his seat opposite her in the little Italian restaurant. She felt so curious whether his colours had appeared in the same order as hers.

"Red," he answered, giving her a shy smile, almost as if he was embarrassed to describe it to her. "The same colour as your hair. What was yours?"

"Blue," she replied, smiling widely as she remembered the discovery. "Like your eyes."

They were quiet for a moment, not entirely sure what to say. It seemed odd to go from complete strangers to knowing that you were destined to be together in one fell swoop.

"Do you really believe in soulmate stuff?" Arthur asked suddenly.

"Of course! Don't you?" Molly answered, disappointment creeping over her.

"I'm not sure," he said, looking off over her shoulder and adjusting his glasses, and she felt as though he were far away from her, in a land of his own thoughts. "I don't know if I believe that the universe really knows what's best for us. I mean, we're complete strangers to one another, don't you think that knowing from the start that we're meant to end up together will influence how we get to know each other? What if it's a self fulfilling prophecy and we only end up together because we try so very hard to be the perfect match for each other because it's what we think is supposed to happen?"

Molly could tell that he was incredibly intelligent, and incredibly prone to questioning things around him. Arthur seemed the type to dissect every little bit of information and second guess everything. But she also imagined that he was the type to make astonishing discoveries because he kept pushing at the seams when everyone else stopped.

"I don't think it works like that," Molly replied slowly, thinking through her response as carefully as possible. She didn't want Arthur to think she was daft for believing in fate. "I think that no matter what, loving someone is always hard work, but the knowledge that this person is our true partner gives us the courage to persevere."

"You're a woman of great faith, aren't you?" he asked, looking at her rather curiously. Quite unexpectedly, his tone was one of awe rather than disapproval.

"I suppose so," she admitted. She did like to believe the best in people.

They sat quietly for a minute, neither comfortable nor uncomfortable in the silence. It was strange, to be sure, but it wasn't unpleasant. It felt as though they were simply out of practice, but that after a time, it could be quite normal to sit quietly with each other.

"I have an idea," Molly said suddenly, smiling happily at Arthur. This was going to be perfect. "We'll each take turns asking questions that we think are important things to know about your life partner. We'll both write down our answers so the other can't see, and then when we've gone through everything, we'll exchange papers. We can't be influenced by each other because we don't really know anything yet. So we just have to promise to be truthful, and it'll work. A sort of experiment to test your query."

"I love it," Arthur replied enthusiastically, grinning from ear to ear.

They asked each other every question they could think of - some critically important and some more fun, and by the end, Molly was dying to know what Arthur's answers were, and if they matched up with hers. For several long minutes, they asked questions and wrote, and hoped that the stars would align the way they had been promised. At the end of it, Arthur slid his paper across the table with an apprehensive expression and Molly did the same while offering him what she hoped was a reassuring smile.

Molly's eyes scanned over his answers, feeling oddly endeared by his untidy scrawl. It wasn't exactly messy, but more the handwriting of someone who was enthusiastically hurried. Focusing, she turned her attention to his answers.

Do you want children? If yes, how many?

_As many as I can handle - I always longed for a big family._

Do you think women should stay at home to raise the children?

_Women should do whatever they please, with no judgment from anyone else._

Do you think it's important that your partner has lofty career ambitions?

_I think it's more important that they love their job and think that what they do matters._

What is the most important thing to make a marriage successful?

_Equal partnership. One person can never be thought to be above the other, more important, or more knowledgeable. Marriage and parenthood should be taken on as a team._

With each new answer, Molly felt more and more assured of their destiny. Though there might be small inconsistencies in their answers, they were - on the whole - in agreement. Their visions of life, marriage, and family were all the same, and that couldn't be a mere coincidence. She watched as a smile began to spread across Arthur's face.

"Do you always require proof in order to believe?" Molly asked, half teasing him.

"Not at all," he smiled. "I'm an inventor of sorts, my entire trade is believing that things will work before I have any proof of it."

"So do you believe that we'll work?" she pressed. Though she didn't need confirmation of the universe's plan for them, she did need to know that Arthur had faith that a relationship between them could work.

"I'm starting to, yeah," Arthur grinned.

Molly's heart leapt and she felt butterflies swirling in her stomach, and it was such a wonderful feeling. She hoped that she would always feel that way when she looked at Arthur.

Fate didn't play around with soulmates for nothing though. It had chosen Arthur and Molly to be together, and it knew they would find success in their harmony. Fate had a wonderful life in store for them - it wouldn't be free of struggle, but it would be filled with happiness and family, and that was all the two of them would ever need.


End file.
